Tag: Joe Soto

Welcome to the non-liveblog of UFC 177: Dillashaw vs. Soto, a pay-per-view card so shockingly irrelevant that we’ll barely be covering it tonight. Basically, we’ll update the results through the night — which you can find after the jump — and that’s about it. If something particularly interesting happens, we’ll let you know, and if we find any good GIFs, we will link you to them. Thanks for checking in with us, and follow us on twitter for bonus commentary.

As karmic retribution for the UFC trying to sell us a garbage-ass pay-per-view, Renan Barao withdrew from his UFC 177 headlining fight against TJ Dillashaw earlier today, following complications during his weight cut.

As a result of the withdrawal, the UFC has drafted — get this — former Bellator featherweight champion Joe Soto to step in on a day’s notice against Dillashaw. Soto is riding a six-fight win streak, and was set to make his UFC debut tomorrow night against Anthony Birchak (never heard of him) on the prelims. So now, tomorrow’s pay-per-view event is UFC 177: Dillashaw vs. Soto. Card subject to change. Refunds now available.

UFC 177 was so star-deprived that Renan Barao himself was the biggest name on the card. And now he’s gone. God help us all. UFC 177 will proceed with just eight fights on the card. When we woke up this morning, there were ten, but then Henry Cejudo did his thing, and now this. Unreal.

“(Barao) is scared,” Dillashaw said after the bad news broke. “He doesn’t want it. His coaches wanted the rematch more than he did. He’s never missed weight before. It’s kinda funny he does it now.”

When it comes to MMA, everyone has preferences. Some people want nothing but knockouts (these are the people waiting three hours to get Chuck Liddell’s autograph), some people love nothing more than a fighter scoring a submission win off their back (if you don’t heart Sakuraba, I don’t want to be your friend). Some people love the heavy leather of the weight classes over 200 pounds (looking at you, Stak40), and some people love the non-stop dynamos that compete below 160 pounds. For those who dig an “I just gave my four year old Starbucks and meth” pace, Bellator hooked it up with a bantamweight showcase at The Majestic Theatre in San Antonio last night, and topped off the card with a much-anticipated matchup between current Featherweight Champion Joe Soto and Joe Warren. If you missed it, you better have a damn good reason or a note from your mom.

Come on in for a recap, but I *highly suggest* you watch Soto – Warren before you read it. These guys both wanted the belt like a thirteen year old girl wants a vampire boyfriend, and they put on a jaw dropper. I’ll talk about it, run down the other fights on the card, and if you’re good boys and girls, I’ll even tell you about bantams.

(In case you forgot who Joe Soto is, here’s his beatdown of Yahir Reyes from the featherweight finals at Bellator 10.)

Not counting their impending battle in a court of law, Bellator’s third season will be packed with compelling matchups. The tournament-based fight club announced today that season 2 featherweight winner Joe Warren will challenge for Joe Soto‘s belt at Bellator 27 (September 2nd at the Majestic Theatre in San Antonio). Soto ran through Bellator’s inaugural 145-pound tourney last year, and most recently scored a TKO over Diego Saraiva in a non-title bout at Bellator 19, bringing his unblemished record to 9-0.

For its upcoming season, Bellator is focusing on big men, tiny women, and exiled UFC talent. Here’s a rundown of the notable matches that have been reportedly booked so far…

Chances are that if you watch Bellator, you’re going to see something new. Unless you’re Jordan Breen, you’re probably going to see a fighter or two you haven’t watched before. You may see something silly, like Matt Major’s sweet man-panties at Bellator XVI. Or it may be something exciting, like a 360 degree spinning guard pass and punch from Ryan Thomas at Bellator XV. This is part of the excitement of watching a Bellator event: the joy of discovery that many MMA fans just don’t get very often these days. Sure, we may be surprised by the results of fights — that’s why they have gambling on MMA — but most of us have a rough idea of what to expect when we sit down to a Pay Per View. Not so with the BFC. Bjorn Rebney has managed to catch lightening in a bottle, putting on interesting cards on a weekly basis with up-and-coming talent that deserves the exposure.

Bellator XIX went down in Grand Prairie, Texas last night, with the welterweight tournament semifinals and a featherweight SuperFight on tap. Results after the jump. Also, a concise explanation as to why they call it “the jump.”

Also on the card, WEC vet Bryan Baker won a unanimous decision over IFL/UFC vet Matt Horwich, and Wilson Reis snuck off with a split decision victory over Roberto Vargas. Full results from the event can be found here; Bellator heads to Uncasville, Connecticut this Friday for their welterweight finals. The Soto/Reyes beating is after the jump.

Bellator Fighting Championships‘ sixth installment went down Friday night in Robstown, Texas, featuring the two semi-final fights of their featherwight bracket — both of which produced shocking results. Undefeated tournament favorite Wilson Reis ate his first career loss in an upset against rising star Joe Soto, who stuffed Reis’ takedowns and kept the fight standing where he had the advantage. Soto outstruck Reis to a comfortable unanimous decision, earning the right to face the night’s other big winner, Yahir Reyes, in the tourney’s featherweight finals. Reyes withstood an aggressive showing early on by opponent Estevan Payan — who missed weight by over three pounds — before knocking him into last month with a brilliant spinning-backfist.